My Real Estate Blog

The programs, under the umbrella title of Keep Your Home California, are federally funded as part of the U.S. Treasury Dept.’s Hardest Hit fund, and are aimed at helping low and moderate income homeowners struggling to pay their mortgages amid the worst real estate crisis in decades.  California received a total of nearly $2 billion through the Hardest Hit fund. After consulting with community leaders throughout the state, four programs were created to assist California families.

Specifically, the Keep Your Home California programs provide:

• Mortgage assistance of up to $3,000 per month for unemployed homeowners who are in
  imminent danger of defaulting on their home loans.
• Funds to help homeowners who have fallen behind on their mortgage payments due to a
  temporary change in a household circumstance. The program will provide up to $15,000
  per household to reinstate mortgages to prevent foreclosures.
• Money to reduce the principal owed on a mortgage for a home where the low or
  moderate income homeowner is facing a serious financial hardship and owes
  significantly more than the home is worth. The program requires lenders to match any
  assistance provided by the Keep Your Home California program.

To apply for the assistance, homeowners should contact the Keep Your Home California call center toll-free at (888) 954-KEEP(5337) or their mortgage servicer – the company to which the borrower sends monthly mortgage payments. Each of the mortgage assistance programs requires the participation of the mortgage servicer.

As of Feb. 9, the following servicers are participating in all four Keep Your Home California programs:

• GMAC
• Guild Mortgage
• California Housing Finance Agency
• California Department of Veterans Affairs

Other servicers, including Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, CitiMortgage and Wells Fargo are currently participating in some, but not all programs at this time. The list of participating servicers is expected to expand in the coming weeks.

Reprinted From C.A.R.